Kynurenine formation

The implication of hydrogen peroxide as a component of the tryptophan-oxidizing system came from experiments in which increased kynurenine formation was found in samples supplemented with materials that caused increased H2O2 production. Lower activity was found when extra catalase was added, but maximum activity appeared when the peroxide-generating system and catalase were balanced an excess of either caused decreased activity. Recently, Tanaka and Knox (1959) have shown that the effect of hydrogen peroxide is restricted to an initial activation of the enzyme, and that, subsequently, neither peroxide formation nor catalase influences the course of the reaction. Free hydrogen peroxide, therefore, appears eliminated as a product or reagent in the oxidation of tryptophan. 

Phenoxazines — The two main types of phenoxazines are the ommochromes and the microbial phenoxazines. The biosynthesis of ommochromes occurs via the kynurenine pathway. The tryptophan amino acid is converted to formylkynurenine and then to kynurenine and 3-hydroxykynurenine. Not all the steps of ommochrome synthesis are completely elucidated yet. Ommatins are dimers and ommins are oligomers of 3-hydroxykynurenine. - The papiliochromes are derived from tyrosine as well as from the tryptophan pathway. The key intermediate in the formation of papiliochromes is N-beta-alanyldopamine (NBAD). Papiliochromes are synthesized in special wing scale cells, before melanins. " "... 

This enzyme [EC 3.5.1.9], also called kynurenine for-mamidase and formylkynureninase, catalyzes the hydrolysis of A-formylkynurenine to yield formate and kynurenine. The enzyme will also use other aromatic formylamines as substrates. 

Similar protocol has been successfully used for the preparation of / -aroylaminoacids (Equation (22)), including protected L-kynurenine. Careful exclusion of air is crucial for the success, as in the presence of oxygen, the formation of symmetrical ketone formed from organozinc reagent competes with carbonylative cross-coupling. ... 

Returning to the major tryptophan catabolic pathway, marked by green arrows in Fig. 25-11, formate is removed hydrolytically (step c) from the product of tryptophan dioxygenase action to form kynurenine, a compound that is acted upon by a number of enzymes. Kynureninase (Eq. 14-35) cleaves the compound to anthranilate and alanine (step d), while transamination leads to the cyclic kynurenic acid (step e). Hie latter is dehydroxylated in an unusual reaction to quinaldic acid, a prominent urinary excretion product. 

Actinomycin.—Kynurenine and 3-hydroxykynurenine are actinomycin precursors in Streptomyces antibioticus (cf. Vol. 6, p. 42). Recently, kynureninase and hydroxykynureninase activity has been identified in S. parvulus cultures and the latter activity was found to show correlation with actinomycin formation.57... 

Tryptophan catabolism is also associated with several dead-end pathways, for example the formation of kynurenic and xanthurenic acids. Normal urine contains small amounts of hydroxykynurenine, kynurenine, kynurenic acid, and xanthurenic add. When large amounts of tryptophan are fed to animals, the excretion of these compounds increases. Xanthurenic acid is excreted in massive quantities in vitamin B6 deficiency. 

Figure 9-53 Determination of lymphocyte kynureninase activity levels using HPLC. Enzyme activity is measured by quantification of formation of the product, 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid (3-HA A). (A) 3-HA A standard (12.0 nmol/L). (fl), Lymphocyte homogenate blank. (C) Lymphocyte 3-HAA production after 5 min of incubation in presence of 3-hydroxy-kynurenine. Peaks 1,3-HAA unmarked peaks are unidentified components. (From Ubbink et al., 1991.)...

The result of this is that at low rates of flux through the kynurenine pathway, which result in concentrations of aminocarhoxymuconic semialdehyde below that at which picolinate carboxylase is saturated, most of the flux will be byway of the enzyme-catalyzed pathway, leading to oxidation. There will be Utde accumulation of aminocarhoxymuconic semialdehyde to undergo nonenzymic cyclization. As the rate of formation of aminocarhoxymuconic semialdehyde increases, and picolinate carboxylase nears saturation, there will be an increasing amount available to undergo the nonenzymic reaction and onward metabolism to NAD. Thus, there is not a simple stoichiometric relationship between tryptophan and niacin, and the equivalence of the two coenzyme precursors will vary as the amount of tryptophan to be metabolized and the rate of metabolism vary. 

As discussed in Section 8.3.3, estrogen metabolites inhibit kynureninase and reduce the activity of kynurenine hydroxylase to such an extent that, even without induction of tryptophan dioxygenase (Section 9.5.4.1), the activity of these enzymes is lower than is needed for the rate of flux through the pathway, thus leading to increased formation of xanthurenic and kynurenic acids. 

Tryptophan quite clearly follows different metabolic routes. Our studies have been devoted to the pathway that, proceeding through the formation of kynurenine (an amino acid but no longer an indole) to the biosynthesis of nicotinic acid, explains the formation of the various intermediates. Kynurenine is the key substance in this process. 

Formation of xanthurenic acid is a typical feature of vitamin Be deficiency. It is the substance which first drew attention to the possible relationship between pyridoxine and the enzymes connected with protein metabolism. The formation of xanthurenic acid, however, is catalyzed by an enzyme, kynurenine transaminase, which requires pyridoxal phosphate as coenzyme. The apparent discrepancy between these two facts will be explained below. 

Heyes MP, Chen CY, Major EO, Saito K (1997) Different kynurenine pathway enzymes limit quinolinic acid formation by various human cell types. Biochem J 326 351-356. 

Catabolism of tyrosine and tryptophan begins with oxygen-requiring steps. The tyrosine catabolic pathway, shown at the end of this chapter, results in the formation of fumaric acid and acetoaceticacid, Iryptophan catabolism commences with the reaction catalyzed by tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase. This enzyme catalyzes conversion of the amino acid to N-formyl-kynurenine The enzyme requires iron and copper and thus is a metalloenzyme. The final products of the pathway are acetoacetyl-CoA, acetyl-Co A, formic add, four molecules of carbon dioxide, and two ammonium ions One of the intermediates of tryptophan catabolism, a-amino-P-carboxyrnuconic-6-semialdchydc, can be diverted from complete oxidation, and used for the synthesis of NAD (see Niacin in Chapter 9). 

---